


Trinity, Unbound

by pinecone



Category: Kuroko no Basuke | Kuroko's Basketball
Genre: Family, Gen, Slice of Life
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2014-07-17
Updated: 2014-07-17
Packaged: 2018-02-09 02:59:15
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,634
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1966413
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/pinecone/pseuds/pinecone
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Before everything disintegrated, Alex, Himuro and Kagami used to be a family.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Trinity, Unbound

**Author's Note:**

> This was written because I wanted to flesh out their relationships in canon. Family dynamics are one of my favourite things. Just assume everyone's speaking in English here. =) Enjoy!

“Quick! Grab the ball!”

“Yeah, I’ve got it— damn! No!”

“Defend, Taiga! _Defend_!”

Kagami ran towards the other end of the court, Himuro’s yells echoing behind him. Stretching out his arms in desperation, he tried to block the shot. But Alex’s throw was so indomitable, it seemed to go right through Kagami’s flailing hand. The ball fell through the hoop with grace. Alex’s shots were always like that, reminding Kagami of a wild predator’s simultaneous poise and power.

With a cheeky grin, Alex placed a hand on her hip, glancing down at the two boys panting heavily in front of her. “So,” she said cheerfully. “I win again! How many times has it been already, huh? Fifty? Sixty? Seventy? I don’t know, I’ve lost count!”

In between breaths, Kagami shot Himuro a petulant look. “You know, this wouldn’t have happened if you hadn’t sent such a careless pass.”

Himuro’s eyebrows jumped up and down. He struggled to keep the disbelief off his face. “Are you actually blaming _me,_ Taiga? Your older brother?” He elbowed Kagami. “I’m sure you’re aware this could have been avoided if you had just _caught_ my pass, right?”

Kagami grinned. Sticking out a tongue, he said, “I would have caught it if your pass was any good to begin with, Tatsuya.”

“Taiga, I think I will have to discipline you for disrespecting your older brother —”

“Alright, alright, calm down kids,” Alex spoke up. “I think you’re both forgetting something very important here.”

Kagami and Himuro looked at her with open mouths.

“My victory sodas! Go on then, go grab them for me. Remember, I want _five_ cans of it! Not one less.”

Both sighing, Kagami and Himuro went off towards the vending machines next to the busy street roads. Once in front of the machines, they pulled out their wallets, tipping them over. A few dollars fell out, and a single coin. Then, a moth literally flew out of the empty pockets. Seeing this, they both let out another sigh in unison.

“Alex is literally draining out all my allowance…” said Himuro with a tinge of mournfulness.

“Yeah, I don’t think we have enough now to actually pay for her sodas.” Kagami gulped. “What do you think she’s gonna _do_ to us?”

“Probably make us do even more suicide drills.” Himuro’s voice was slightly hoarse. He tried to quirk a smile. “Well...at least it kind of motivates us to do even better in basketball?”

Kagami let out a snort. “Wanna bet that she’s only doing this for the free sodas?” He leaned in conspiratorially. “I actually think she’s kind of...what’s that word? You know, the word that means enjoys seeing others in pain?”

Himuro thought for a while. “Statistic?”

“Yeah.” Kagami nodded. “I think she’s statistic. She likes seeing _us_ in pain. And she likes forcing us to buy her free food, free sodas, free everything!”

“If she _is_ statistic _,_ though, Taiga, then it was a huge mistake for us to ask her to train us —”

“What are you brats talking about, huh?” A hand suddenly slammed down on both their heads. Kagami and Himuro yelped. They turned to see Alex, sporting a too-large smile, one corner of her lips twitching. “It better not be about me…”

“It wasn’t about you!” Kagami said, too quickly.

Himuro dragged a hand down his face. Then he smiled weakly at Alex. “Sorry, Alex, we were just doing some calculations...we don’t think we have enough money for your sodas…”

“Oh, don’t worry about that,” said Alex, waving a hand. She held out a plastic bag hanging on her hand. “I got burgers and sodas for everyone! Dig in, boys!” Turning to Kagami, she added, “I got extra for you, too, Taiga.”

“Wow, awesome!” Kagami grabbed the bag enthusiastically, and took out four burgers immediately.

“Thank you very much, Alex,” Himuro made sure to say, before he quickly pulled the bag from Kagami.

As Kagami yelped at the intrusion, Alex merely watched the two boys scuffle over the bag. Then she let a smile drift over her face. It was a small, contented curve of her lips, a smile as rare and beautiful as a delicate flower blooming amidst a raging storm. That flower could only last so long.

*

It was shortly after he met Himuro that Kagami met Alex. He had just begun to adapt to life in Los Angeles, with the help of Himuro, when he was once again thrust into the complete unfamiliarity that was Alex. Like a sudden tornado, she swept Kagami up into a vortex of confused red faces and burning ears. She had kissed both him and Himuro at first meeting, for crying out loud. Kagami tiptoed— no, strode bravely and confidently, behind Himuro for days after that incident, whenever they met Alex for basketball.

Not too soon after that, Alex became an inextricable part of his life in Los Angeles. She was tied to basketball, which was tied to Himuro, who was tied to Kagami in a bond more secure than even among actual brothers. Kagami knew: they were true brothers, and their truth extended beyond actuality. Alex was an inconvenient kissing monster he had to endure, for the sake of that bond.

Then suddenly, she no longer became inconvenient. This realisation didn’t hit Kagami like a natural disaster (unlike when he first met Alex). It struck him slowly and gradually, as though it was a fragile seed, being sown carefully inside him. The series of flippant phrases that were Alex’s trademark might well have been sprinkles of water, giving life to that seed. They had all culminated in one crucial moment.

One day, Kagami had been jogging around the court along with Himuro, on Alex’s orders. Alex was lying (more like, posing) on the bench by the side of the court, drinking one of the sodas _he_ had bought, with his _own_ money. At the time, he had thought she was an annoyance, like a fly that refused to leave, who liked taking his sodas and throwing easy shots over his head.

He’d soon lost count of the number of laps. Collapsing by the side of the court, he leaned against Himuro, both of them panting. Alex strode languidly up to them. Immediately, Kagami scooted away from her, shooting her a petulant glare.

“So, brats, don’t you think that was just too few laps? You have to do more tomorrow!” Alex placed a hand on her hip and pointed a forefinger at them authoritatively.

“But Alex…” said Himuro in between breaths. “I don’t know…if we can take it…”

“No excuses!” Alex barked. “Do you kids want to get better in basketball or not?”

Reluctantly, Himuro nodded. Kagami was breathing too heavily to do anything.

“Then you gotta do what I tell you, ‘kay? Stop whining about your weaknesses! Instead, work to improve on them, brats!”

“Fine…” they both muttered.

“Good.” Then all of a sudden, her stern expression changed into a bright, goofy smile. “Now go buy me more sodas. That’s an order from your teacher!”

“What!” Alex’s pronouncement drew Kagami out of his tiredness. He snapped up to glare at her at once. “No way! I’ll go broke!”

“Are you trying to disobey your teacher?” replied Alex menacingly.

“Your order isn’t even part of the frigging lesson! So yes, I _am_ disobeying you!” Kagami crossed his arms sullenly. “I planned to use the remaining money to grab cheeseburgers with Tatsuya later…”

“Cheeseburgers?” Alex blinked. “You plan to _buy_ them?”

“Yeah! How else would you get cheeseburgers, huh? Lazy Ox Canteen sells the best cheeseburgers around here!”

Alex laughed, long and hard. Then she leaned down, and patted Kagami on the head condescendingly. He ducked away, scowling.

“Oh my dear, sweet, innocent Taiga,” said Alex, shaking her head. “Everyone knows you can just make cheeseburgers. All you need is a grill. You’ve been wasting all your money, my poor boy.”

Kagami stared at Alex with wide eyes. So did Himuro.

“Y-you know how to _make_ cheeseburgers?” Kagami said in a hushed voice.

“Well, yeah, of course.” Alex shrugged. “It’s really easy.”

“C-can you…” Kagami paused to swallow some saliva. “Can you make some for me?”

“Hmm…” Alex crossed her arms, looking skywards in deep contemplation. Then she smiled mischievously at Kagami. “Sure, I’ll do that for you.”

“Really?!”

“Yup.” Alex nodded. “But you gotta do triple interval runs and suicide drills in return.”

Kagami gaped. Himuro turned to him and patted him on the back pityingly. “Just give it up, Taiga. Triple the sets might actually kill you —”

“I’ll do it.”

This time, both Himuro and Alex gaped. Kagami merely looked at them with a determined frown.

After a long moment, Alex closed her mouth to clear her throat. “Alright, that’s a deal! No take-backs!” she said cheerfully. “Off to my house then, off to my house~”

Scowling all the way, Kagami stomped behind Alex while Himuro shook his head next to him. Merely an hour and a half later however, Kagami, and the corners of his lips, felt weightless despite the seven cheeseburgers now occupying his stomach.

Thus, Alex ceased to be an inconvenience in Kagami’s eyes.

Because she was no longer an inconvenience, things like birthdays were not irrelevant anymore. Kagami called it a chore. The truth was, if he didn’t do anything for her, he would lie in bed, fidgeting until the sun rose and red veins formed in his eyes.

Alex’s birthday was coming up next week. Himuro and Kagami already had a few sleepless nights. 

“How old will Alex be, again?” said Himuro, rubbing his eyes tiredly as he walked with Kagami to their usual streetball court to meet Alex.

“I don’t know...she’s pretty old,” Kagami replied, stifling a yawn. “Er...Twenty-five?”

“Hmm…” Himuro thought for a moment. “Is she really that old?” To Himuro and Kagami, the age of twenty-five seemed an eternity away.

“I think she’s even older than that, actually,” said Kagami, sticking out his jaw stubbornly. “She nags us so damn much, I wouldn’t be surprised if she’s over thirty.”

They both turned a corner.

“So what would you get an old person for their birthday?” pondered Himuro. He looked at Kagami. “...Taiga? What’s the matter?”

Kagami had been looking at a group of boys in the street across from them. His eyes were narrowed and there was a crease on his forehead.

“Those guys. They’re torturing a dog— no. A puppy.” His hands went into fists. “I’m not fond of dogs at all...but that’s just sick. It’s awful.” He trembled slightly.

Himuro looked over at the boys. He saw them kicking something small and black on the ground. One of the boys was using a broken glass bottle to hit it. He heard whimpers, distinct even where he and Kagami were standing. His own eyes narrowed.

“Taiga, I think we should go over there and— Taiga?!”

Kagami was already halfway over to the boys. Something very hot was inside him, like red-orange molten metal, making him move towards the boys.

He drew nearer and heard their cruel words. “Try to bite me now, huh! Filthy little shit. Look at it. It fucking stinks!”

“Urgh...kick it away! Quickly!” said one of the boys, lifting a hand to cover his nose. One of his friends moved forward and extended his leg.

This was when Kagami spoke. “Oi! Stop that!” He stood in front of them, fists by his side and legs apart. Tension was rising inside him, like a dam straining to explode.

In surprise, the boys looked up, forgetting the puppy. Seeing that it was only Kagami, a boy shorter and smaller than them, their faces contorted to become sneers.

“Look at this little asshole. He thinks he’s some big hero,” said one of them.

Then another one of them spoke up, “Go away, kid. This isn’t any of your business.” He turned to the rest. “It’s just a kid. Let’s just ignore him.”

“Yeah.” More of them agreed. The boy who spoke first scowled.

“Fine,” he said. He scoffed. “Let’s just go.” As the boys turned, he aimed one last kick at the puppy.

“I said stop that!” Kagami yelled. He rushed forward. Inside him, the dam burst. The water released was like his adrenaline, pumping through his veins, through his limbs. He leapt onto the boy, tackling him to the ground in the boy’s shock.

“Hey!” the other boys shouted. They moved to help their friend.

Hands were all over Kagami, trying to get him off the boy. He couldn’t pay attention to them, however. He was trying to avoid the kicks and punches of the boy beneath him. He lifted his hands to block a punch, then tried to execute his own. The boy beneath him took his chance, striking out at Kagami’s face. A kaleidoscope exploded in his eyes. Kagami reeled. Before clarity came back to his vision, a force, like a battering ram, smashed into his middle. Kagami flew backwards. Hitting the ground, his knees scraped the stones and he tasted dust.

“Hey! Don’t hit my little brother!” came Himuro’s voice. He sounded angrier than Kagami had ever heard him.

The sound of scuffling and grunts filled the air. Kagami heard his own breathing the loudest of all, his lungs heaving like a balloon being simultaneously squeezed and blown. Then a pained cry, voice too familiar to Kagami, cut through the air.

Kagami’s head snapped up. “Tatsuya!” Himuro was doubled over, clutching his middle.

“Hey, what’s going on here!”

Alex’s voice. Relief flooded over Kagami. The sound of her voice had the immediate effect of calming his heartbeat. It was like being pulled from the depths of a small, constricting pit, into vast blue skies. He couldn’t help a smile.

“I’m calling the cops!” said Alex, the threat evident in her tones. “Beating up children? That’ll go into your records permanently!”

“Shit.” The boy Kagami had been fighting with scrambled up from the ground. The rest of his friends turned and curtailed out of there. In a few short moments, they had turned a corner and disappeared.

“Tatsuya!” Kagami said at once. “Are you okay?”

Himuro looked up, then smiled. “I’m just fine.” He walked over to Kagami and squatted next to him, still on the ground. “What about you, Taiga?”

“I’m fine too!” Kagami replied. He tried to get up, then fell back down. “ _Ouch!”_

“Taiga! You’re not fine— ” but Himuro was cut off. Hands descended onto Kagami’s and Himuro’s heads.

“What’s the meaning of this, huh?” Alex deliberately knuckled their heads until they both yelped. “You kept me waiting at the court and when I come out to look for you, I find you both fighting!”

“ _Ow,_ Alex!” Himuro tried to get away from her hand. “It’s not our fault! Those guys were bullying a puppy!”

Alex stopped knuckling them. “A puppy?”

“Yeah,” said Kagami with a scowl, tilting his head away from her hand. “It’s over there.” As if on cue, the little black puppy whined. It crawled out and stopped in front of Kagami, wagging its tail.

“Ack! Get it away from me!” Kagami, in panic, crawled backwards like a splayed frog.

Himuro stared at Kagami incredulously. “It’s trying to thank you, Taiga! Geez, after your big hero act, _this_ is how you behave…”

“Shut up! It’s scary, okay?”

“ _Both_ of you shut up,” Alex spoke up, rolling her eyes. She stooped down to examine Kagami. After a few minutes, she made a face. “No good. Your knees are busted. I gotta get you back to my place to fix you up.”

“I’m _fine,_ ” said Kagami exasperatedly. He tried to get up to prove it. Before he could move an inch, however, Alex swooped in, pressing her lips to Kagami’s.

“Blargh!” Kagami spluttered, red-faced and spitting. He glared at Alex from the corner of his eye.

“Be a good boy and listen to Alex, alright, dear?” said Alex, all smiles in her lips, all ice in her eyes. She turned around, her back facing Kagami. “Here. Get on. I’ll piggyback you home.”

Kagami opened his mouth to protest, but one look from Alex stilled his tongue. Scowling petulantly, he crawled onto her back. Once he was secure, Alex stood up, cradling Kagami by lacing her fingers behind her back. Then she looked at Himuro.

“Pick up the puppy. I’ll handle that too.”

“Okay!” Himuro bent down, gesturing at the puppy. “Here, boy!” The puppy tilted its head at him, giving a wag of its tail. Himuro peered under the puppy. “Er...I mean, girl! Come here, girl!”

As Himuro dealt with the puppy, Kagami tapped Alex’s shoulder. “Why do we have to bring the puppy along? It might bite me!”

Alex didn’t answer him immediately. Instead, she said first, “Ready, Tatsuya?” Himuro nodded, the puppy comfortable in his hands. Only when they started walking towards her place, then she began talking.

“Listen here carefully, both of you. When you do something, you must be prepared to go all the way. You owe it to the task. This is what you call responsibility. You both stepped in earlier to rescue this puppy. But just because you managed to send those boys away doesn’t mean your job is done. You have a responsibility towards this puppy now.”

Kagami blanched. “N-no! I can’t keep dogs! You know I can’t— ”

“I know,” said Alex, eyes rolling. “I meant that you have to make sure this puppy gets taken care of. When we get back, I’ll clean it up then look for a shelter to keep it.”

In the house, Alex cleaned up Kagami’s knees with a gentleness he had never seen before. He had always associated her with overwhelming power and dominance, just like a cheetah. Then she took the puppy, and with Himuro, went to the bathroom. Before she left the room, however, she ran her fingers lightly over Himuro’s and Kagami’s heads.

“Good job standing up for the bullied, boys. You shouldn't have fought with those guys...it's dangerous, it would've been better if you'd chosen a different approach. But I think I would’ve kicked your asses if you’d just walked away instead.” She quirked a lopsided grin.

They both reddened. Glancing away, Kagami spluttered something incoherent. Himuro smiled. “Thank you, Alex,” he said quietly.

Years later, this incident would emerge in Kagami’s mind. Kuroko, with his immediate action to help a group of bullied boys, was the one to bring forth that image. Kagami hadn’t even known it had been seared into him, as deep as one of those bas-relief carvings. It was only then that he realised that memories had a way of imprinting themselves into souls. If not with crystal-clear clarity, then with the little things. Himuro’s caring smile before he left the room. The pride in Alex’s eyes as she grinned. Kagami knew he would remember those things for a very long time.

*

One week after that, Kagami and Himuro continued having their sleepless nights. The insomnia didn’t do much to help in their quest. They were both yawning repeatedly as they headed to the court to meet Alex for her birthday. 

“So what did you get Alex in the end?” said Kagami blearily.

“I made her this card.” Himuro pulled out a crookedly folded piece of A4 paper with crudely drawn balloons, a cake and many basketballs drawn all over it. He had also taken the liberty to decorate Alex’s name on the cover, with the ‘e’ replaced by a deformed basketball and the ‘A’, a deformed basketball hoop. He tucked the card carefully back into his bag. “What about you then?”

“Crap, that looks really good,” Kagami said with slight jealousy. “I asked my dad what I should get someone old. He told me that old people would be happy if I spent a lot of time with them and not leave them alone. That didn’t help me at all.” He sighed. “So I tried looking it up on my own. I nearly pulled all my hair out!”

“So-o...you didn’t get her anything?”

“No, okay, I didn’t!” Kagami shouted, scrunching his eyes.

“She’s gonna kill you,” Himuro said bluntly.

“I know!”

They both neared the court. Then all of a sudden, someone called their names.

“Taiga! Tatsuya!”

Both of them turned around to see a sandy-haired boy running up to them. They broke into grins at the sight of him.

“Robert! Hello,” said Himuro, eyes crinkling.

“Want me to beat you in streetball again, huh, Rob?” Kagami snorted, punching him on the shoulder. Robert was one of Kagami’s classmates. Crazy about basketball like the two of them, he played it with Himuro and Kagami frequently.

“Shut up, Taiga!” Robert exclaimed at once. But he was smiling. “What are you guys doing?”

“Oh, we’re just on the way to meet our basketball teacher,” Himuro replied.

“You have a teacher, Taiga? Whoa! No wonder you’re so good in basketball!” Robert grinned excitedly at Himuro. “You know he single-handedly brought our class to victory against the upperclassmen during interclass games the other day? Taiga’s _awesome_!”

“I sure am,” said Kagami cockily. He stuck out his jaw, a grin splitting his face. “Those seniors had nothing on me! It’s all thanks to our lessons with Alex, Tatsuya.”

“Oh, really,” Himuro said. He looked between Robert and Taiga.

“Damn, you’re just amazing, Taiga. Right, Tatsuya?” Robert said. “Remember the other day? It was just so tough playing against Taiga!” Kagami let out a self-important laugh in response, hands on his hips.

“Ha ha ha!” It echoed in the street.

Himuro smiled. “That’s right. Taiga’s really good.” His eyes, however, had stopped crinkling.

“We still couldn’t beat Tatsuya though,” Kagami said with a pout. “He snuck in a three-pointer in the last minute.”

“You very nearly stopped it, though!” Robert interjected earnestly. “I was so scared but luckily Tatsuya’s shot went in. Maybe next time you would be able to stop it! Right, Tatsuya?”

“Maybe.” Still smiling, Himuro shrugged.

“Heh, I’ll do my best next time.” Kagami grinned, thumbing his nose. After a short moment, Himuro turned and started walking.

“We’d better go, Taiga. Alex might punish us if we’re late.” He waved at Robert. “We’ll see you next game then!”

“Crap, yeah. I don’t want her to torture me, I already don’t have a present for her!” Running after Himuro, Kagami pulled down an eyelid and stuck out his tongue at Robert. “Bye! I’ll smash you in basketball next time!”

“Shut up!” Robert’s parting yell echoed behind them as they walked off. In the short distance to the basketball court, they didn’t say anything to each other. Kagami was still grinning, reliving his triumph over his upperclassmen. Himuro was expressionless, kind eyes towards the ground and hands gripping his slingbag tightly. A few minutes later, they turned into the court. Alex was already there, sitting on a bench with crossed arms and legs, and tapping a foot.

“You brats were nearly late. Just one second later and I would’ve dragged you here with your ears!” Alex barked in greeting, her eyes narrowed cheekily.

“Happy birthday, Alex!” Himuro smiled, this time with sincerity. His eyes crinkled. Kagami kicked the ground, a plume of dust mushrooming from the movement. Then he mumbled the same greeting.

Alex matched Himuro’s smile with a wider one. “Oh...so you kids remembered my birthday! Do you have presents for me?” She held out both hands, cupping them like a bowl.

“Yup!” Himuro dug through his bag in excitement.

“Presents, presents~” sang Alex while Kagami made more dust mushrooms.

“Here, Alex.” With utmost care, Himuro placed the card onto Alex’s outstretched hands.

“Ooh!” Alex’s eyes became round. Like it was a fragile object prone to decompose at the slightest force, Alex fingered the card. She opened it and peered at every inch of it. Once she was done, she ran her fingers through Himuro’s hair.

“Thank you, Tatsuya. This is beautiful! I love it!”

Himuro failed to hide a sigh of relief.

Alex turned to Kagami. “And what about you, Taiga?”

His trainers now covered in dust, Kagami frowned. He crossed his arms viciously. “I don’t have anything for you, okay!”

“Wha-at? No presents from Taiga?”

“Yeah!” Kagami scrunched his eyes. “And you’d better not get mad or else you’ll get more wrinkles than you already have! You’re getting old after all!” Himuro sighed again, in resignation.

An eyebrow twitching, Alex ruffled Kagami’s hair until he tried to hop away from her. “Ungrateful little brat! I should punish you with even more training sets!” Squirming, Kagami pushed Alex’s hands away from his head.

“But I won’t.”

Kagami froze. Himuro, shaking his head, stopped to look up with wide eyes too.

Smiling mischievously, Alex placed one hand on her hips, then pointed a forefinger at them. “I’ll make a deal with you. If you can score just one basket against me under fifteen minutes, I’ll buy everyone sodas and food. But if you can’t, both of you will have to do any training sets I instruct, no matter how tough it is.”

“What?” Himuro gaped. “Why me, too?”

“Gotta be fair with training,” said Alex with a carefree shrug.

Gulping, Himuro said, “I don’t know, we haven’t been able to break past your defences— ”

“Deal.” A cocky smirk on his face, Kagami extended a hand towards Alex.

“Taiga!”

Ignoring Himuro, Kagami grabbed Alex’s hand and shook it, hard. Then he punched Himuro on the shoulder. “Come on, Tatsuya! Both of us against her...I think we have a shot at it now! We’re getting so good!”

Himuro looked at Kagami for a moment. “Y-yeah…” He took a deep breath, then smiled at Alex. “You’re on, Alex!” The confidence in his stance hid the slight waver.

The game commenced. Himuro and Kagami tried many times to shoot but Alex was too quick for them. Himuro and Kagami were soon panting heavily. Alex remained looking as though she was merely relaxing on a beach.

“This is useless, Taiga,” Himuro hissed, in between breaths. “I think we should change tactics. Focus on shooting from the outside. You should just hand the ball to me, I’m more accurate on the outside.”

“No,” replied Kagami, dribbling the ball. He wiped off the sweat trailing down his forehead. “We should break past her defences or else this game would have no meaning. We shouldn’t run away.”

“We’re not running away. We’re just trying a different strategy.”

“Let’s try this one more time. Pass the ball to me. I’m better at attacking near the hoop, so I’ll get the ball through.”

Himuro froze. He turned, slowly, towards Kagami. “...What?” Did Kagami just say he was better? All of a sudden, Himuro’s heartbeat was too loud in his ears. His fingers itched to go into fists.

“You heard me, Tatsuya. Give me the ball. I guarantee that I can get it past Alex.” Grinning, Kagami gave Himuro a thumbs up. “Trust your little brother, okay?”

Himuro continued looking at Kagami, sweat dripping slowly down his neck. The path of every bead tracing the pores of his skin tickled him. But in this moment, that was insignificant to him.

“Hey, hey, are you brats gonna attack or what?” Alex’s bored drawl penetrated the bubble of that moment. Kagami cracked a smirk.

“Hell, yeah we are. Take this!” He immediately did a drive towards the hoop.

“Wait, Taiga!” Himuro ran towards the three-point line. Holding his hands out, he called out, “Pass it to me! I’ll make the outside shot!” Only he could hear the tinge of desperation in his voice. Kagami was too absorbed in his attack, and Alex was intent on defending.

“Aren’t you being too reckless, Taiga?” she said cheerfully. “You’re going up against me and you want to do such a straightforward attack?”

“I’m not reckless. I can make this attack!” Kagami stuck out his tongue. Then he started running towards the hoop.

Those movements. Himuro’s eyes widened. He knew them so well. Watching countless NBA games with Kagami made sure of that. It was a move he dreamt of in the night. A move he was certain he wanted to perform one day.

He was certain he wanted to perform it. But he was uncertain of when. Some day, one day, both were abstract concepts. But he took comfort in their equivocality. It ensured that his confidence would always remain intact. Like a pillar attached to neither a roof nor a ground. There would never be any chance of the pillar crumbling from the weight.

Kagami was taking that chance now. He was attempting to execute a dunk.

“Taiga!” he yelled out. “Send the ball here!” It was useless. His voice might as well have been wisps of smoke.

Kagami leapt towards the hoop.

“Careful, Taiga!” Alex called, darting to him. In mid-air, Kagami failed to reach the hoop. He was falling towards the ground, fast. The ball, in his hand, was getting further away from the basket.

Kagami didn’t seem to notice. Without any proper basketball form, he threw the ball towards the hoop. Then he landed on the ground. Alex crouched down to examine him, but he didn’t pay attention to her. His eyes were fixed on the hoop.

So were Himuro’s. The ball bounced slightly off the rim, but hit the backboard. Then as if in slow motion, it fell through the hoop. It jostled the net as it slipped in, as easily as a scoop of ice cream down one’s throat.

Silence, for a moment. Then a grin broke out on Kagami’s face. “Yeaaah!” he shouted, pumping his fists into the air.

“Wow,” said Alex, still next to Kagami on the ground. She scratched her face with a finger. “You really know how to make use of a failed dunk, huh, Taiga.” Smiling widely, she mussed Kagami’s hair. “Well done.”

Kagami laughed, leaning into her touch.

Over at the three-point line, Himuro, panting, was still staring at the hoop. He couldn’t take his eyes off it. Sweat flicked off him onto the floor, forming a pattern like a broken spider’s web. He lacked the strength to wipe it off.

They moved to a Denny’s after that. An overplayed top-of-the-charts pop song was playing. The repetitive chorus irked Himuro. It was the kind that would be catchy at first, but soon loses its novelty. Tunneling into his head, Himuro could only try to ignore it, while listening to Kagami continue talking. He hadn’t stopped since their walk from the court.

“...the only thing in my mind was, what would you do against such a frigging powerful force? Well, the answer was simple.” Kagami paused to wolf down several pieces of chicken. “Fight it with another force, of course! That was when I realised I had to attack like a tiger if I wanted to have any chance,” he finished with his mouth full.

Alex wiped off a bit of food Kagami had spat onto her. “Just remember it won’t work all the time, Taiga. Aggression isn’t always the best move. In this case, though, it made for a very exciting match, so I’ll allow it this once.”

“Yeah, yeah, stop nagging, Alex!” Kagami sprayed impatiently. “Do you want to get even older or something?”

Alex leaned across the table to pinch his cheeks. “Say that again, you little brat,” she said sweetly, a forced smile on her face.

“Ow, ow, ow!”

Nearly an hour later, Kagami had to leave. Hopping about on the spot, he said to them, “I gotta go or my dad’s gonna kill me. Thanks for the dinner, Alex!” He patted Himuro on the shoulder. “Great game earlier, Tatsuya. We actually managed to score a basket against Alex _under fifteen minutes_! It’s frigging awesome!” Then he turned and left, waving at them goodbye vigorously.

Heading in the same direction, Himuro and Alex walked together down the street. Alex was humming to herself. Himuro kept silent. One by one, the street lamps lit. It was almost like watching stars light up. As though they were both in the deep space, and only at one specific time, the stars would brighten, revealing their luminosity. A magnificent spectacle which happened very rarely. And they were there to witness it.

Himuro finally spoke up, after several minutes of silence. “...Why did you let him shoot earlier, Alex?" 

“Hmm?” Alex stopped, mid-hum. “Oh…” She laughed sheepishly. “You noticed that, huh?”

“Of course. You let him through your defence. Why?”

“Why…? Hmm...why did I do that?” said Alex, as though asking herself. A moment later, she shrugged. “I wanted to see if he could do the dunk.”

“He couldn’t, though.” Himuro’s voice sounded forceful, even to himself. The force of it could have snuffed out a light.

“He certainly failed spectacularly,” Alex agreed, with a chuckle. “Still, you both managed to score against me! Can’t change that fact.” She started humming again.

Everything was silent once more, except for Alex’s quiet hums. Nearly every street lamp was already lit.

Then, “Who do you think— ” but Himuro cut himself off. It sounded like his lungs were suddenly tied with a rope. He fell silent. Shame rose within him, further constricting his lungs.

Alex spoke up, “I’m very proud.” She threaded her fingers through the back of Himuro’s hair. Her hand was soft and gentle. The warmth of it untied the rope around his lungs. He breathed in and out, calm and even.

“Very proud, of my two talented students,” Alex went on. Then she smiled. A quirk in the lips as soft and gentle as the hand on the back of Himuro’s head.

Himuro smiled back. Looking ahead at the streets, they suddenly seemed wide, welcomingly wide. He felt like traversing every inch of them.


End file.
